Trump has called on Musk to intensify DOGE efforts to slash federal spending, reinforcing Trump’s push for leaner government.
President Donald Trump has urged Elon Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), to ramp up his efforts to identify potentially fraudulent or wasteful federal spending for cuts as part of Trump’s vision for lean government and lower deficits.
“Elon is doing a great job, but I would like to see him get more aggressive,” Trump wrote on Feb. 22 in a Truth Social
post. “Remember, we have a country to save, but ultimately, to make greater than ever before. MAGA!”
Musk quickly responded with a
post of his own, “Will do, Mr. President.”
DOGE, created to streamline government operations and eliminate waste, has an 18-month mandate with a target of slashing $2 trillion in federal spending before its scheduled dissolution on Independence Day 2026. Musk has acknowledged the ambitious nature of this goal, stating that even achieving half of it would mark a significant step in tackling inefficiency.
The president’s call on Musk to get more aggressive with DOGE’s efforts follows the tech entrepreneur’s
appearance Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) near Washington, where he promoted the idea of slashing government waste by holding a chainsaw aloft and shouting, “This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy!” in a scene reminiscent of Argentina’s President Javier Milei.
In a Fox News interview in early February, Trump said he expects DOGE will “find billions, hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud and abuse,“ adding that the American people voted to cut reckless and wasteful government spending, while praising Musk and his leadership at DOGE as ”terrific.”
Over the past month, Musk and DOGE staffers have moved quickly and aggressively to pursue reforms across federal agencies, with DOGE recently
reporting saving $55 billion through canceled grants, asset sales, workforce reductions, and terminated contracts and leases.
Trump recently took additional action to accelerate these efforts by signing an executive order directing federal agencies to work with DOGE to eliminate costly or conflicting regulations. The order follows Trump’s earlier
directive requiring all agency heads to work with DOGE to cut staff and limit hiring throughout the federal government.
Musk said recently that DOGE needs to move boldly to cut federal spending because of the growing national debt and the associated rising costs of interest payments on that debt. In an
interview with Fox News, he warned that without cutting deficits and reducing debt, Medicare and Social Security will be impacted.
“We either solve the deficit, or all we'll be doing is paying debt,” he said. “It’s got to be solved, or there’s no medical care, there’s no Social Security, there’s no nothing. It’s got to be solved.
“It’s not optional,” Musk said. “America will go bankrupt if this is not done.”
Meanwhile, DOGE and the Trump administration have faced sharp criticism from many congressional Democrats, who accuse them of probing federal agencies without adequate congressional oversight or transparency.
DOGE also faces multiple lawsuits, some demanding compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act to prevent private decision-making without public access. Others challenge its access to data or argue that its structure violates separation of powers and weakens congressional oversight.
